Cha Bum-Kun

1972/75 Korea University (CRS)

1976 Seoul Trust Bank FC (CRS)

1976/78 Korea Air Force (CRS) (army)

1978/79 SV Darmstadt 98 (GER) 1 match

1979/83 Eintracht Frankfurt (GER) 156 matches, 58 goals

(German Championship: 122 matches, 46 goals)

(German Cup: 12 matches, 6 goals)

(UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 6 matches, 1 goal)

(UEFA Cup: 16 matches, 5 goals)

1983/89 Bayer Leverkusen (GER) 215 matches, 63 goals

(German Championship: 185 matches, 52 goals)

(German Cup: 15 matches, 7 goals)

(UEFA Cup: 15 games, 4 goals)

With the National Team :

128 caps, 56 goals

(Friendly matches: 11 caps, 3 goals)

(World Cup qualifiers: 20 caps, 7 goals)

(World Cup: 3 caps)

(Asian Cup qualifiers: 3 caps)

(Asian Cup: 5 caps, 1 goal)

(Asian Games: 12 caps, 2 goals)

(Merdeka Cup: 34 caps, 21 goals)

(President's Cup: 21 caps, 15 goals)

(King's Cup: 19 caps, 7 goals)

1st cap: May 7, 1972 against Iraq (0-0)

Last cap: June 10, 1986 against Italy (2-3)

Olympic: 6 selections, 2 goals

Cha Bum-Geun (차범근)

Born May 22, 1953 in Hwaseong (CRS)

South Korea.png South Korean, right-winger/striker 1m79

Nickname: Cha-Boom

It was in the rural town of Hwaseong that Cha Bum-Kun was born. The son of a farmer, he distinguished himself with his football technique from a young age. Playing for Korea University, he was directly integrated into the national team where he would become a living legend. It was on May 7, 1972 that he participated in his first international match against Iraq, the final score 0-0. What must be remembered is that he was only in the University Team, yet at 18 years old, he was already one if not the best player in the country.

He then played 2 years for the Air Force team in the Korean championship. He made a name for himself there and imposed his talent in the eyes of the Korean public. A true superstar of the country, he became a legend by becoming the first Korean player to sign in Europe, a big bet for the time. And the adventure will be a real success despite a first season in Germany at SV Darmstadt 98 where he only participated in one small match, this is explained by the Korean government having forced him to do his military service that year.

Disappointed by this, the club decided to part ways with him and the player went to Eintracht Frankfurt where he would finally be able to show the extent of his talent. A whirling winger or a center forward, he is a very technical and above all very effective player. Measuring 1m79 for 78kg, the player is first laughed at and then respected. Cha Bum-Kun is an athletic, powerful player, with great self-denial and an unrivaled sense of goal.

Cha Bum-Kun won the UEFA Cup then the German Cup in 1981 and established himself as one of the best foreign players in the Bundesliga. In 1983, he decided to join Bayer Leverkusen, who offered a better economic offer to the player. With the Korean player in their ranks, Bayer Leverkusen would win the first major trophy in its history with the 1988 UEFA Cup in a crazy scenario, initially led 3-0, the players of the German team would catch up before winning the penalty shootout.

One of his best seasons, however, remains the 1985-86 season during which he scored 17 goals. In 1987, when the player was 36 years old, he decided to end his career. He will be remembered for his fair play, throughout his career, he will have received only one yellow card. He will also be for a time the record holder for goals for a foreign player in Germany with 98 goals scored (beaten in 1999 by the Swiss Stéphane Chapuisat).

In the national selection, he was one of the few good Korean players of his time. He arrived too early in a country still developing its football. He still scored 56 goals in 128 matches with Korea and participated in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, a great feat for the time.

- Voted Best Asian Player of the 20th Century in 1999

- Voted Best South Korean Player of the Year in 1973

- Inducted into the Korean Football Hall of Fame

- Received the German Federal Cross of Merit in 2019

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